Plastic traveler



Patented Aug. 17, 1943 PLASTIC TRAVELER William M. Camp,

Glen Ridge, N. J., assgnor to The Clark Thread Company, Newark,

corporation of New Jersey Application March 31, 1942, Serial No. 436,960

Claims.

This invention relates to travelers which are used on spinning and twisting frames in the textile industry.

In the past, travelers have been made of either steel or bronze, the bronze being used mostly on wet twisting, where the presence of water makes it undesirable to use steel. These travelers rotate around the ring at a high speed, and in the case of twisting where the drag on the traveler is heavy it is necessary to provide lubrication between the traveler and the ring, this taking the form of an oil or grease. Even under conditions of good lubrication, wear takes place on the traveler and also on the ring and the ine particles of metal which are worn oif become embedded in the grease and are subsequently oxidized and thus form visible stains on the yarns or threads.

. These stains consist of oxides, carbonates, soaps,

etc., of the respective traveler and ring metals, and are very diflicult to remove in the ordinary processes of kier-boiling and bleaching.

Many attempts have been made to make travelers of materials, other than steel and bronze, using materials including hard rubber and glass. These materials, however, have not been satisfactory because of their brittleness and poor resistance against wear.

It is an object of this invention to provide a traveler possessing properties which have long been sought, including the following:

1. A longer life than steel or bronze travelers.

2. Requiring less lubrication than steel or bronze travelers or no lubrication.

3. Producing little or no wear on the steel ring and therefore obviating the contamination of the yarn or thread referred to above.

4. Corrosion resistance, to avoid corrosion in wet twisting.

The invention will be further described by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows one type of conventional ring with a traveler mounted thereon;

Fig. 2 `shows a traveler for use with the ring of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 shows another type of conventional ring with a traveler mounted thereon; and

Fig. 4 shows a traveler for use with the ring shown in Fig. 3.

In accordance with the generic aspect of this invention, travelers are made from vinylidene chloride polymers.

Travelers made from molded vinylidene polyners possess a combination of properties which have long been sought. They possesshigh impact and abrasion resistance and remarkable resistance to water, acids and alkalies. The tensile strength and iiexibility are satisfactory.

Moreover, the flexibility and fatigue strength are greatly increased by extrusion and in further accordance with this invention travelers are made by machining, cutting or stamping from extruded stock. For example, the polymer may be extruded through a die so constructed that the cross section of the extruded stock has the same cross section as that of the traveler and the latter is then made by cutting the extruded shape in planesl perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said extruded stock.

Travelers may be made in many shapes and since these shapes are well known, no details thereof are necessary. The art of molding and extruding vinylidene chloride polymers is per se known and the conditions may, be varied by those skilled in the art, in the light of the present disclosure and invention, to produce travelers having a. combination of high impact resistance, abrasion resistance, wearing qualities, iiexibility and resistance to solvents and water. Resiliency is required because the jaws of the traveler are usually sprung apart in mounting it on the ring. Toughness and impact or shock resistance are required to avoid undue breakage. Abrasion resistance is desired to avoid undue wear. Corrosion resistance is desired to avoid corrosion in wet twisting.

In some cases, it may be desired to provide a traveler having a metallic core and a wearing surface comprising or composed essentially of a vinylidene chloride polymer. This may be done, for example, by using a steel or metallic insert and molding a vinylidene polymer around, said core so that the latter is embedded in the resulting molded product.

What is claimed is:

1. A traveler, the wearing surface of which comprises a vinylidene chloride polymer.

2. A traveler composed essentially of a vinylidene chloride polymer.

3. A traveler composed essentially of a molded vinylidene chloride polymer.

4. A traveler composed essentially of an extruded vinylidene chloride polymer.

5. A traveler having a metallic core and a wearing surface composed essentially o1' a vinylidene chloride polymer.

WILLIAM M. CAMP. 

